White Smoke
by musingsofamelody
Summary: Once again it seems like the Slytherins have no one else to bully, but Lily Evans. But when she needs someone there, who is the one to protect her? JL
1. Chapter 1

White Smoke

_Chapter One_

The moment the bell rang the hallways flooded with students who were all leaving their classes for lunch. The warm sun's rays lit up the grounds of Hogwarts brightly and warmed the castle through its many windows. Several students were milling outside through the doors, their chatter rising to the air.

"So what did you guys think of today's class?" asked Claire as she tried to manage the several textbooks in her arm.

The four tired and rumpled looking girls Clair Marie, Lily Evans, Natalie Maple, and Lynda Becker were just leaving from their Transfiguration class. For today's lesson they had to transform an object into an animal. The objects they used could be anything found in the classroom. Claire decided to transform her book into a butterfly, Lily decided to transform her quill into a lily, Natalie transformed her shoe into an owl, and Lynda turned her bag into a frog.

McGonagall had made her demonstration seem simple. If only it was that… For the last hour and a half all the students had tried to transform their objects, but everyone failed so badly that Professor McGonagall had been the maddest anyone had ever seen her. Everyone reckoned she would have been angrier if it hadn't been for the one student who was able to transform their object correctly.

"It was horrible," Natalie groaned, trying to flatten her unkempt hair. "I can't even transform a bloody shoe. A shoe! Do you have any idea how hard it is to transform a shoe?"

"A shoe? That's nothing. I just can't believe how fast James transformed that wardrobe," grumbled Lily, staring straight ahead with angry eyes. Her feet slammed against the ground with every step she took. "I swear he didn't even do it himself! He must have paid McGonagall off to do it for him."

No one replied, not that anyone needed to. Everyone knew very well that there was no way a student could have paid off McGonagall.

The only person who actually completed the lesson was James Potter. Professor McGonagall told him to be the first to transfigure something and he immediately pointed his wand at the large wardrobe sitting behind her desk, gave it a wave, and immediately the wardrobe transformed into hundreds of golden Snitches that flew around the classroom.

It was without a doubt that James was the best student in the whole school, particularly in Transfiguration and Defence Against the Dark Arts. He had transformed the largest object out of all his classmates at which appeared effortless and he managed to do it non-verbally. At the end of the class the only person who didn't seem to have a five page essay to write and three chapters to read was James. As usual…

Unexpectedly Lily's bag ripped and the contents inside fell to the floor. The other girls tried their best to jump over the items to avoid damaging anything and to avoid getting any ink on their shoes from the broken bottles spilling out in front of them.

"Oh crap," Lily muttered. People passing by went around them as she bent down to pick her stuff up when a loud voice called from behind them.

"Hey mudblood! Oh, are you sad your itsy, bity, bag broke!? Don't worry we can make you feel better, mudblood!"

She inwardly groaned. She didn't have to look up to know that the voice belonged to Malfoy. She wished he would just walk by without a word like everyone else was doing, but even she knew that would be like asking God for snow in the middle of July.

The girls looked towards the sound of his voice and as usual he was flocked on both sides. His girlfriend Narcissa sauntered at his side with his 'friends' Crabbe, Goyal, Flint, and Bellatrix following closely behind.

"Go away Malfoy!" said Lily, angrily as she stood up with a few books in her arms. The other girls were also holding a few of her items as they too turned to the oncoming troop.

"Umm... no... no, I don't think so," Malfoy smirked as he glanced at his gang with looks passing between them.

"Come on Lily," whispered Lynda, tugging on Lily's sleeve. "Let's go."

Before they could even take a step Bellatrix's high pitched voice rang out. "Are you scared?" she taunted.

"Come on hurry up, this is boring!" Flint complained behind Malfoy. People in the hallway stopped and watched wide eyed at what was happening in front of them and yet not one of them spoke out. They all knew that if they did, they too would be attacked.

Malfoy chuckled with a smirk. "We should start then. Someone needs to teach these mudbloods and mudblood lovers whose world they're really living in."


	2. Chapter 2

_CHAPTER 2_

Suddenly Malfoy quickly took out his wand and pointed it at Lily. The girls stiffened and everyone in the hallway stiffened as he shouted, "Faturdo!"

All the students around them watched as slowly Lily grew. Her torso suddenly widened as if she weighed 300 pounds. Her legs, arms, and neck thickened with her face and cheeks also growing bigger until finally it all stopped and Lily looked as if she couldn't fit through a door anymore. She could barely move and if she did manage to it appeared more like a waddle. Malfoy's gang burst out laughing, along with several of the students in the hallway. Lily stood crying as her friends gasped and tried to stand in front of her to shield her from everyone's eyes.

She had never felt so humiliated. Why didn't hadn't she done something? She should have retaliated instead of standing dumbfounded.

"Lily, come on. Let's get McGonagall's help," said Claire. She put an arm around Lily's shoulder and tried to steer her in the direction of the Transfiguration classroom. Her friends glared at everyone in the hallway. It appeared they were the only ones not laughing.

"You're not going anywhere mudlbood! We're not finished yet!" and as Malfoy spoke the rest of his gang made a gigantic circle around the four girls, cutting them off from escaping anywhere. The bystanders, who all appeared to be Slytherins, watched in amusement. Malfoy pointed his wand at Lily, who's tears streamed down her face.

"Lardeneno!"

A large orange light shot out of Malfoy's wand and headed towards Lily when a fast white smoke came into the corridor and collided head on into the spell which disappeared. The white smoke headed towards Malfoy who shouted and started running down the corridor scared, glancing over his shoulder as the white smoke came closer. It swirled around Malfoy and then flew away from him. He fell to the ground, his robes wrapping around him as he tried to desperately to swing them off him.

The white smoke flew over the heads of the Slytherins who ducked and ran down the corridor, trying to get away, but stopped when red bricks built themselves from the stone floors to the ceiling into a solid brick wall. Everyone stared at the white smoke, scared, as it moved in front of Lily. Before everyone's eyes the white smoke slowly disappeared into what everyone recognised as James Potter until the smoke faded. For the first time in her life Lily could truthfully say she was pleased to see James. He normally was not her first choice in people, but in terms of protector, it couldn't have been better for her. James pointed his wand at Lily and instead of feeling scared as to what he was going to do, she was pleased. Of all the people in Hogwarts, he was one person she knew wouldn't hurt her.

Her body tingled warmly and she watched in amazement as a sunlight yellow light gently slithered out of James' wand and wrapped itself around her arms and legs, crawling its way along her body until her covered her fully like a spring. She felt herself feel lighter and lighter until she was back to her original self and the light disappeared.

White smoke outlined James faintly as he quickly zoomed backwards, his whole body turning inside then out behind him so he now faced Malfoy, who was finally able to untangle himself from his robes and slowly stood up. James stood in front of him, glowing with the white smoke outlining him and floating a foot above the floor. His eyes burned bright with rage and Malfoy stared up at him terrified as did everyone else.

"If you ever touch Lily again, I swear you'll regret doing so. I can do magic you wouldn't even dream of which you know firsthand, don't you?" James smirked darkly. "Stay away from her or you'll have to answer to me and that's a promise Malfoy."

Malfoy trembled slightly, his mouth gaping open. James stopped glowing and lowered to the ground. His fist collided into Malfoy's face knocking him to the ground once more. To everyone's amazement James lifted his right palm towards Malfoy, who suddenly shot down the corridor along the stone floor until he was quickly out of sight.

James turned around to face everyone else.

"Did anyone else here have something to do?"

No one answered and it seemed once he was satisfied the brick wall undid itself down to the floor and disappeared. As soon as the corridor was clear everyone quickly left as fast as they could except for the four girls. Lily stared at James as he walked towards her. She stood mutely in place wondering what he was doing when he lifted her off her feet. Her body was warmed and the next thing she knew her body as well as James' were being engulfed by the bright white smoke. Her friends watched agape as the white smoke flew down the corridor and out of sight, leaving them to stare after them.


	3. Chapter 3

_CHAPTER 3_

The white smoke stopped on a clear area near a lake far away from the Hogwarts Castle. The white smoke disappeared and changed into James and Lily. She looked around, not believing where they were. They had to be somewhere in the Forbidden Forest. She had never dared step foot into the woods next to the castle for fear of what she might find in it. Or should she say, what might find _her_.

"Wow, it's beautiful," said Lily.

James walked towards the water's edge and sat down with his arms on his knees. "I don't think anyone knows about it. It's not like students come strolling into the forest every day and if they did they sure didn't make it this far. Are you all right?"

"I am now. Thank you," Lily said moving to sit beside him.

They remained quiet, staring at the lake covered in bright sunlight. A centaur at the far end could be seen taking a small drink from the water.

"Why?" she said quietly.

"Why what?"

Lily looked at him confused. "If Malfoy had been doing what he did to me on Severus you would have just allowed him to continue. But you stopped him from doing it to me."

A corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk. "Well I can positively say that without a doubt I don't have the same feelings for Snivl – Snape as I do you."

Lily looked away. "I have tried everything to keep you away from me. I've even resorted to being a bitch."

James chuckled.

"And yet, here you are."

He nodded. "And here I am."

Lily straightened her legs and started pulling at blades of grass between her legs. "To be honest, I was so scared. I didn't know what to do or how to defend myself. All I could remember was hearing 'mudblood' in my head over and over again and it was like every defence spell I had been taught just flown out of my head."

James paused for a moment before replying. "You know no matter how many times you yell at me or 'be a bitch' towards me, you'll always have at least one person to protect your back."

She stared at him for a moment. She slowly smiled and nodded. "I know and somehow that makes me feel better even though it shouldn't."

"You shouldn't stop something that is meant to be when you know it feels so good."

"And we – you and I – are meant to be?"

James glanced at her and gave a small sincere smile. "Sure. Hasn't something ever felt so right that you could just feel it to your bones? That no matter what life throws at you nothing could change what feels right wrong?"

She didn't speak for some time. She was busy mulling things over in her mind. A part of her couldn't bring herself to come to term with the feelings she had, that she had always had, and the other part of her just wanted to say screw it already and do what made her feel good.

She rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped an arm around one of his. She felt him stiffen in surprise at first, but he quickly relaxed.

"You know, Potter, maybe I was wrong about you all this time. This was actually one of the few good conversations we could actually have that showed just who you truly are and not that arrogant, dirt bag scum I see you behave at times."

James snorted. "You like that side, admit it."

Lily laughed and as they watched the water glistening under the sun she knew that no matter what, no matter what life threw her way now and in the near future, James would always protect her and always be there for her no matter when and where. For once she would allow herself to be swayed by the guy who had continuously tried to win her and finally her heart won over her mind.

Now if only she could get him to teach her how to turn into smoke…


End file.
